Mallet Meaning
/ˈmælɪt/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA type of hammer with a larger-than-usual head made of wood, rubber or similar non-iron material, used by woodworkers for driving a tool, such as a chisel. A kind of maul.
nounA weapon resembling the tool, but typically much larger.
Sentence Examples
I have mallet problems at the moment.
Can you send it with a mallet?
Sami tried to kill Layla with a mallet.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
To avoid damaging the wood, the carpenter used a rubber ____ to gently tap the chisel.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The carpenter used a wooden ____ to gently tap the pieces of wood into place and create a tight joint.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English malet, maylet, from Old French mallet, maillet (“a wooden hammer, mallet”), diminutive of mal, mail (“a hammer”), from Latin malleus (“a hammer, mall, mallet”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"The Mallet of arms, according to the representation of it given by Father Daniel, exactly resembles the wooden instrument of that name, now in use, except in the length of the handle, it was like the hammer of arms, to be used with both hands, indeed it differed very little from that weapon in its form."
— 1786, Francis Grose, A Treatise on Ancient Armour and Weapons, page 51:
"I had had no opportunity as yet of passing on Poirot’s message to Lawrence. But now, as I strolled out on the lawn, still nursing a grudge against my friend’s high-handedness, I saw Lawrence on the croquet lawn, aimlessly knocking a couple of very ancient balls about, with a still more ancient mallet."
— 1920, Agatha Christie, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, London: Pan Books, published 1954, page 120:
"I regularly have cause to recall a scene from a novel called Madder Music, by Peter de Vries, in which the main character, a writer who specialises in polo, hears a match announcer telling newcomers to the ground that, contrary to popular belief, the ball is struck with the side of the mallet, rather than the end."
— 2016 September 13, Tim Dowling, “Order force: the old grammar rule we all obey without realising”, in The Guardian:
"[…] and when a couple of insurgents ran in to make the capture she malleted them with her rifle."
— 2007, John Geddes, Highway to Hell, page 220:
"Its 50 H-7 2-8-8-2's (30 of which found their way onto the Union Pacific roster in 1945) were simple mainly because a tunnel in the Alleghenies would not accommodate the low-pressure cylinders of any Mallet larger than a 2-6-6-2."
— 1959, David P. Morgan, editor, Steam's Finest Hour, Kalmbach Publishing Co., page 60, referring to the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
To avoid damaging the wood, the carpenter used a rubber ____ to gently tap the chisel.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The carpenter used a wooden ____ to gently tap the pieces of wood into place and create a tight joint.